Active/adaptive building structural components

ABSTRACT

A building, comprises at least a first wall including a plurality of first members each having a fixed length and a plurality of second members each having a variable length, the first members and the second members being coupled in a lattice structure. The second members are configured to lengthen or shorten in response to structural strain or pressure caused by thermal cycling of the building.

BACKGROUND

1. Field

This disclosure relates to methods and system for building very largestructures capable of actively compensating for thermal expansion andcontraction and wind forces.

2. Background

The background description provided herein is for the purpose ofpresenting the general context of the disclosure. Nothing described inthis background section, as well as aspects of the description that maynot otherwise qualify as prior art, are expressly or impliedly admittedas prior art against the present disclosure.

The idea of an “energy tower” capable of generating internal wind hasbeen studied for several decades. Unfortunately, to be effective, suchenergy towers must be of an immense size. Unfortunately, conventionalbuilding techniques cannot be used to create such a structure for avariety of reasons not apparently appreciated by those in the relevantarts.

For example, thermal cycling due to daily exposure to sun followed bynighttime periods of cooler temperatures and rainstorms can cause theenergy tower to tear itself apart. Accordingly, new building techniquescapable of accounting for thermal cycling are desirable.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The features and nature of the present disclosure will become moreapparent from the detailed description set forth below when taken inconjunction with the accompanying drawings in which reference charactersidentify corresponding items.

FIG. 1 is a novel energy tower capable of extracting energy from theatmosphere using multiple techniques.

FIG. 2 is a plan view perspective of the energy tower of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a side view perspective of a portion of a wall of the energytower of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3B is a side view perspective of a portion of a wall of the energytower of FIG. 1 stressed in a first way.

FIG. 3C is a side view perspective of a portion of a wall of the energytower of FIG. 1 stressed in a second way.

FIG. 4 is an example of an active structural member shown in FIGS. 3-3C.

FIG. 4B is a second example of an active structural member shown inFIGS. 3-3C.

FIG. 5 depicts a first transfer function for controlling the activestructural member of FIG. 4B.

FIG. 6 depicts a second transfer function for controlling the activestructural member of FIG. 4B.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart outlining an exemplary operation for controllingthe active structural member of FIG. 4B.

FIG. 8 is a second example of a lattice structure usable forconstructing walls.

FIG. 9 is a third example of a lattice structure usable for constructingwalls.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

The disclosed methods and systems below may be described generally, aswell as in terms of specific examples and/or specific embodiments. Forinstances where references are made to detailed examples and/orembodiments, it should be appreciated that any of the underlyingprincipals described are not to be limited to a single embodiment, butmay be expanded for use with any of the other methods and systemsdescribed herein as will be understood by one of ordinary skill in theart unless otherwise stated specifically.

FIG. 1 is a novel energy tower 100 capable of extracting energy from theatmosphere using multiple techniques by generating downward winds—andthus wind energy—using hot-dry air. As the basic concepts of such towersare known in the relevant arts, no further detail will be provided as tothe basic theory of operation of previously conceived devices that mayapply to the present device. As shows in FIG. 1, the energy tower 100includes an upper lip 110, a hollow/vertical member 112 and a base 114.The base 114 houses an array of wind-tunnels and turbines as will beshown below. The lip, 110, vertical member 112 and base 114 cooperate tocause heavy moisture-laden air to accelerate internal to the verticalmember 112 into the individual wind tunnels (not shown) located in thebase 114.

FIG. 2 is a top-down (plan view) perspective of the energy tower 100 ofFIG. 1. The energy tower 100 has a main cylindrical wall 250 wherebyinside the cylindrical wall 250 downward wind drafts are generated byadding moisture to hot-dry air occurring at the top of the tower 100.

Moisture is added by a series of sprinklers (not shown) located at ornear the top of the tower 100 with the sprinklers arranged in a radialweb-like structure. In various embodiments, moisture can be controllablyto air as a function of the atmospheric conditions at the top of thetower 100 as measured by a variety of sensors (not shown). For example,the moisture provided by the sprinklers may be increased with increasedtemperatures and/or lower humidity, or conversely the moisture providedby the sprinklers may be decreased with decreased temperatures and/orincreased humidity. Further, the moisture provided may be changed basedon any given set of conditions depending on whether it may be deemeddesirable to increase, decrease or maintain a particular wind speed atthe bottom of the tower 100.

Outside the cylindrical wall 250 extend thirty-eight (38) vanes 210that, with the cylindrical wall 250, define thirty-eight (38) verticallyelongated air pockets 212 where incident wind may be captured anddirected to one or more wind tunnels. Note that the tower 100 iscylindrically-shaped, and the vanes 210 extend in a radial fashion fromthe energy tower 100 and provide structural support to the energy tower100. To help direct incident wind, flaps 220 are incorporated withineach pocket 212. FIG. 2B depicts details of the tower energy wall 250,vanes 210, air pockets 212, and sprinkler system with sprinklers 270. Tohelp accelerate wind in the air pockets 212, moisture may be added as isfurther explained below.

It is to be appreciated in light of the present specification that thevanes 210 have at least two functions: (1) to add structuralintegrity/support to the energy tower 100 as a buttress, and (2) toprovide an additional form of energy generation by way of capturing windenergy. In this sense, the vanes provide two novel improvements overpreviously conceived/conventional energy towers.

FIG. 3 is a plan of elevation perspective of a portion of a wall of theenergy tower of FIG. 1. The wall portion is arranged as atwo-dimensional Cartesian lattice having horizontal members 310 of afixed length, vertical members 312 of a fixed length, horizontal members320 of a variable length, and coupling devices 330 used to connect thevarious members 310, 312 and 320. While the material and construction ofthe fixed-length members 310 and 312 may vary in different embodiments,for the present example they are rigid and constructed fromhigh-strength and light drawn-steel tubing. As will be shown below, thevariable length members 320 are also rigid and cooperatively form anexpansion/contraction joint between different sets of the fixed-lengthmembers 310 and 312.

FIG. 3B is a perspective of the wall portion of FIG. 3 stressed in afirst way presumable due to expansion or contraction of a number of(unseen) members caused by imposed loads, such as thermal cycling(expansion and contraction) and/or wind loading. FIG. 3C is a side viewperspective of the wall portion of FIG. 3 stressed in a second way againpresumable due to expansion or contraction of a number of (unseen)members caused by imposed loads, such as thermal cycling and/or windloading. As can be seen in FIGS. 3B and 3C, the variable-length members320 either shorten or lengthen in response to structural strain orpressure caused by imposed loads on the tower 100, which causes stressor strain forces on the variable-length members 320, but precludesexcessive forces too act upon the fixed-length members 310 therebypreventing structural deformation or other damage to them and the tower100 as a whole.

While the variable-length members 320 are capable of changing length, itis to be appreciated by those skilled in the art in view of thisdisclosure that the variable-length members 320 may not freely changelength without compromising the integrity of the overall structure asvariable-length members 320 may need to be load-bearing members, i.e.,they need to be able to provide structure and not appreciable expand orcontract in response to external forces. To address this issue, thevariable-length members 320 are constructed so as both have a static(structural load-bearing) mode where the length of the variable-lengthmembers 320 remains unchanged for forces acting upon it below aparticular threshold, and a dynamic mode where the length of thevariable-length members 320 can change for forces acting upon it abovethe threshold. By virtue of these characteristics, the variable-lengthmembers 320 can lengthen or shorten in response to imposed loads on thetower 100 thereby avoiding structural damage to the first members whileat the same time provide load-bearing structure.

FIG. 4 is an example of a variable-length structural member 320A shownin FIGS. 3-3C. The variable-length structural member 320A includes twoelongated tubes 420 and 422 capable of sliding one within the other, ahydraulic chamber 410 coupled to a rod and seal 414, a first mechanicallink 424 coupling the hydraulic cylinder 410 to elongated tube 420, asecond mechanical link 426 coupling the hydraulic rod 410 to elongatedtube 422, flange 460 for coupling tube 420 to a surface (e.g., to astructural member), flange 462 for coupling tube 422 to another surface(e.g., to a vertical member), and a collapsible accordion dust cover 472to prevent contamination from entering the space between the twoelongated tubes 420 and 422. Grease tubes (not shown) may be added forperiodically supplying lubricant between the two elongated tubes 420 and422. Coupled to the variable-length structural member 320 is a hydraulicvalve 490 via hydraulic supply/return hose 460 and hydraulicsupply/return hose 462. An accumulation (not shown) may be optionallyadded to one or both supply/return hose 460 and 462.

For the purpose of this disclosure the terms “pressure” and “force” areused interchangeably as the pressure (positive or negative) withinhydraulic chamber 410 will generally be proportional to the force(stress or strain) applied between flanges 460 and 462. In the exampleof FIG. 4, the hydraulic valve 490 is shown to have a transfer functionof hydraulic flow as a function of pressure/force. In this example, thehydraulic valve 490 prevents hydraulic flow for low-level pressuresbetween −PT to +PT. Thus, for low-level stress or strain, the hydraulicvalve 490 causes the variable-length structural member 320A to behavelike a fixed-length structural member.

However, for pressures that exceed these boundaries, the hydraulic valve490 allows hydraulic flow to pass, which in turn allows thevariable-length structural member 320A to increase or decrease inlength. Thus, it is to be appreciated that a second/variable-lengthmember can be “load bearing” in that it is appreciably resistant tomovement when forces act upon them, but will vary in length in order tocompensate for forces that might otherwise cause a structural failure.

FIG. 4B is a second example of a variable-length structural member 320Bshown in FIGS. 3-3C. The second variable-length structural member 320Bis similar to the variable-length structural member 320A of FIG. 4, butfurther includes a linear sensing rod 470 and connection line 472 thatenable a device to determine the total length of the variable-lengthstructural member 320B.

Also in this example, the hydraulic valve 490 is replaced with acontroller 480 and a bidirectional hydraulic pumping system 492containing, for example a unidirectional pump with a bidirectional valvesystem. While the controller 480, can operate using a transfer functionsimilarly to the hydraulic valve 490 of FIG. 4, it is to be appreciatedin light of the present specification that other transfer functions maybe used.

In operation, the controller 480, which may include a variety ofdedicated circuitry and/or a programmable processor with a centralprocessing unit (CPU) and memory, can implement any number of transferfunctions based upon linear position sensed by transducer 482 and/orpressure/force sensed by transducer 484. Upon sensing the states ofinterest, the controller 480 can implement the transfer function so asto develop an output command to the hydraulic pumping system 492, whichwill in turn cause the hydraulic pumping system 492 to force fluid flowto/from the hydraulic cylinder 410, which in turn causes thevariable-length structural member 320B to increase or decrease inlength.

In some embodiments, one, some or all variable length structural membersin the same expansion/contraction joint may be coupled to a commonhydraulic control system so as to be controlled by the bidirectionalhydraulic pumping system 492.

FIG. 5 depicts a first transfer function 510 for controlling the activestructural member of FIG. 4B. As shown in FIG. 5, the transfer function510 uses one or both of hydraulic pressure and member length/positionfrom a variable-length structural member 320B to develop a hydraulicflow command, which in turn causes a change in length of thevariable-length structural member 320B.

FIG. 6 depicts a second transfer function 610 for controlling the activestructural member of FIG. 4B. Unlike the first transfer function 510,the second transfer function 610 uses pressure and or positioninformation from a plurality of sources, such as other variable-lengthstructural members or sensors otherwise located in the energy tower 100.Optionally, acceleration sensors may be used to provide information asto seismic activity and/or the plumb/level of various structuralmembers. Again, the transfer function 610 uses some or all of theavailable sensor information to develop a hydraulic flow command, whichin turn causes a change in length of the variable-length structuralmember 320B.

FIG. 7 is a flowchart outlining an exemplary operation for controllingthe active structural member of FIG. 4B. The process starts in step 710where sensor data, such as pressure/force data, acceleration data andposition data of one or more fixed and/or variable-length members ismeasured. Next, in step 720, a transfer function is applied to themeasured sensor data to develop a hydraulic flow command. Then, in step730, the resultant hydraulic flow is applied to a variable-length memberto compensate for thermal cycling, or other imposed loads/forces, suchas loads/forces caused by incident wind or seismic activity.

FIG. 8 is a second example of a lattice structure usable forconstructing walls or other structural units, which for this exampleshows a triangular matrix. FIG. 9 is a third example of a latticestructure usable for constructing walls, which for this example is ahexagonal matrix. It is to be appreciated in light of FIGS. 3, 8 and 9that a structural matrix may be Cartesian, triangular, hexagonal orbased upon any other number of geometrical configurations. It is to befurther appreciated that the variable-length members 320 of FIG. 3 maybe arranged as a parallel group and arranged vertically or horizontally,or a combination of both, and that a second group of variable-lengthmembers may be arranged orthogonally to the first group. As shown inFIGS. 3, 8 and 9, the second/variable-length members can be parallel toone another, or arranged in different sets of parallel members with thedifferent sets being orthogonal or otherwise set non-parallel to othersets of second/variable-length members.

Still further, while the structural matrices of FIGS. 3, 8 and 9 areshown as two-dimensional matrices (height and width), the concept can beextended to three-dimensions (height, width and depth) as will berecognized by those skilled in the relevant arts in view of thisdisclosure. In fact, all of FIGS. 3, 8 and 9 can be taken tosimultaneously represent elevated views or plan views of a given wall.

The various fixed and variable-length members above are structuralmembers. Accordingly, facades and other wall coverings, such as steelplating, may be affixed to a lattice in order to form a wind barrier. Insome embodiments and/or situations, such facades/coverings may beconfigured to slide relative to one another to compensate for expansionand contraction.

What has been described above includes examples of one or moreembodiments. It is, of course, not possible to describe everyconceivable combination of components or methodologies for purposes ofdescribing the aforementioned embodiments, but one of ordinary skill inthe art may recognize that many further combinations and permutations ofvarious embodiments are possible. Accordingly, the described embodimentsare intended to embrace all such alterations, modifications andvariations that fall within the spirit and scope of the appended claims.Furthermore, to the extent that the term “includes” is used in eitherthe detailed description or the claims, such term is intended to beinclusive in a manner similar to the term “comprising” as “comprising”is interpreted when employed as a transitional word in a claim.

It will be understood that many additional changes in the details,materials, steps and arrangement of parts, which have been hereindescribed and illustrated to explain the nature of the invention, may bemade by those skilled in the art within the principal and scope of theinvention as expressed in the appended claims.

1. A building, comprising: at least a first wall that includes aplurality of rigid load-bearing first members and a plurality of secondmembers coupled together in a lattice structure, the plurality of firstmembers each having a fixed length, and the plurality of rigid secondmembers each having a variable length and cooperatively forming anexpansion/contraction joint between different sets of first members;wherein the second members have a static load-bearing mode when incidentforces are below a first threshold, and a non-static mode when incidentforces are above the first threshold so as to lengthen or shorten inresponse to imposed loads on the building thereby avoiding structuraldamage to the first members.
 2. The building of claim 1, wherein latticeis at least a two-dimensional lattice.
 3. The building of claim 2,wherein lattice is at least a three-dimensional lattice.
 4. The buildingof claim 2, wherein at least a first group of the second members arearranged parallel to one another.
 5. The building of claim 4, wherein atleast a second group of the second members are arranged non-parallel tothe first group of the second members.
 6. The building of claim 1,wherein each of the second members includes a hydraulic cylinder.
 7. Thebuilding of claim 6, wherein each of the hydraulic cylinders arecontrolled by a hydraulic valve that causes the hydraulic cylinders tobe static for a first range of force [0 to force F1], and moveable for asecond range of force greater than force F1.
 8. The building of claim 6,wherein each of the hydraulic cylinders are controlled by a hydraulicpumping system under direction of one or more controllers configuredaccording to a transfer function.
 9. The building of claim 8, whereineach of the hydraulic cylinders are controlled by a common hydraulicpumping system under direction of one or more controllers configured tocontrol the hydraulic cylinders according to a transfer function. 10.The building of claim 8, wherein the transfer function causes thehydraulic cylinders to be static for a first range of force [0 to forceF1], and moveable for a second range of force greater than force F1. 11.The building of claim 8, wherein the transfer function uses sensedforces from a plurality of second members to control the length ormovement of at least one second member.
 12. The building of claim 8,wherein the transfer function uses sensed lengths from a plurality ofsecond members to control the length or movement of at least one secondmember.
 13. The building of claim 8, wherein the transfer function usessensed acceleration to control the length or movement of at least onesecond member.
 14. The building of claim 4, wherein the first membersand the second members are arranged in a Cartesian matrix.
 15. Thebuilding of claim 4, wherein the first members and the second membersare arranged in a triangular matrix.
 16. The building of claim 4,wherein the first members and the second members are arranged in ahexagonal matrix.
 17. The building of claim 1, wherein the imposed loadis caused by thermal expansion or contraction of the building.
 18. Thebuilding of claim 1, wherein the imposed load is caused by incident windon the building.
 19. The building of claim 6, wherein each first memberincludes a hollow drawn-steel portion.